A charming and spicy Irish romance.
When two exes reunite to attend a weekend-long wedding in Ireland, old feelings resurface.
It’s been a whirlwind two years since Aidan O’Toole scored a record deal and landed a single on the radio. But after nonstop touring and pressure from the label to write a catchier, less “sad bastard” album, Aidan feels little inspiration to write another love song, especially when the muse behind his breakout tune wants nothing to do with him. Aidan and his ex-girlfriend, Cielo “Lo” Valdez, ended on rocky terms when he became famous, but no one can deny that all his lyrics are about her. At the time, Lo had just arrived in Ireland from Texas to attend medical school, and going on a cross-country tour with Aidan would have derailed her degree. After battling cancer as a teen and dealing with an absentee father, Lo had no room in her life for the instability of life with a celebrity. Instead, she’s now content to avoid listening to the radio and leave Aidan in the past—except for the fact that they’re both in the same wedding party. As maid of honor and best man, they’re thrown headfirst into party planning and faking smiles together, albeit unsuccessfully. A hen party results in a puddle of unresolved feelings and a stranded boat, and harmless ribbon cutting leads to unmistakable sexual tension. As Aidan and Lo spend more time together, Aidan realizes that his new album might be just the way to win her back. Can Lo reconcile her fears and let Aidan in, or did their song end forever? In Fairbanks’ second Love in Galway romantic dramedy, her characters experience love and heartache with a beautiful Irish backdrop. Aidan and Lo’s relationship brings the heat, and obligatory wedding hijinks offer breathing room amid more serious subjects like Lo’s health anxiety. Fans of Morbidly Yours (2024) will be happy to see Lark and Callum’s story continue with their wedding, and perhaps sneak a peek into the next Love in Galway chapter with Saoirse and florist Gabe.
A charming and spicy Irish romance.Pub Date: Aug. 12, 2025
ISBN: 9780593851883
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
A book that will wolfishly appeal to the most heated fans of omegaverse erotica.
Tess Covington is a talented, successful contractor who just learned that she’s a late-in-life omega wolf shifter. Her new boss, surly innkeeper Hunter Barrett, is an alpha who’s opposed to the remodeling she’s there to do.
Tess hasn’t made it public that she’s being considered for her own HGTV makeover show, but she runs her career like a well-oiled machine. She posts a lot of her remodels on social media, granting her a certain level of celebrity, and leans on her brothers to help run the business she took over after a stroke made it impossible for her father to keep working. Hunter’s last serious relationship with an omega 10 years ago left him deeply wounded, ending when his parents were killed in a car accident and he moved back home to take care of their lodge—hence his resistance to change. With few exceptions, Tess keeps her newly diagnosed omega status to herself. Unfortunately, as an alpha, Hunter sniffs her out and seems to be the only person capable of helping her with her sudden heats, so there’s a lot of very smutty caretaking. The specificity of omegaverse hierarchy might be new to some readers, but Ferguson’s worldbuilding is quick, easy, and deeply horny. General romance readers might enjoy the grumpy-meets-sunshine and stranded-in-a-snowstorm tropes, although for a book about shifters, the characters spend surprisingly little time in wolf form. There’s not much danger of character development or surprising plot elements here, but for fans excited to read about animalistic mating, that might be enough.
A book that will wolfishly appeal to the most heated fans of omegaverse erotica.Pub Date: Dec. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9780593953693
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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